Coal separator



Oct. 20,- 1936. F. c. WRIGHT. JR 2,058,374

" coAL sEPARAToR Filed May 27, 19:55

Patented` Oct.` 20, 1936 UNITED fsTATEs PATENT OFFICE ooAL sErAnA'ron v Frank C. Wright, Jr., Tarrytown, N. Y., assignor to Penn Anthracite Collicries Company; Scran ton, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application May 27, 1935, serial No. 23,743 ,4 claims. (ci. 209-159) This invention .relates to improvements in apparatus for the separation of materials of diierent specific gravities by the oatation procl ess, and more particularly for the separation of coal and slate. In the type of apparatus to which my invention is applicable, the coal, containing slate as its principal impurity, -is f ed into a conical receptacle Awhich is kept iilled with a uid mass having a specic gravity higher than that of coal and lower than that of slate, so that the Coal floats while the slate sinks in the mass. A shaft arranged vertically in the cone carries `agitator arms below the floating coal and thesel cause a circular motion of the liquid mass and hence a flowof Vthe floating coal from the `feed- Y ing point to a Weir at the opposite side of the cone where the coal passes out of the cone. In separators of this type in commercial use, some of the slate which should sink to the bottom of the cone oats out with the coal, and the purpose of the present invention is to remedy this defective separation.

In the accompanying drawing.

Fig. 1 is a vertical section through the separator on the line I-I of Fig. 2, and,

Fig. 2 is a plan view of thesame, the agitator shaft being in section on the line 2-2 of Fig. l.

The type of separator to which my invention relates is illustrated in U. S patents to T. M.

30 Chance Nos. 1,556,676, 1,605,172, and 1,937,190, and in the accompanying drawing sumcient of the separator is shown to illustrate my improve:

ments. vThe conical receptacle in which the separation of the coal and slate takes place is indicated at athe discharge chute for the slate is indicated at b,- and .c indicates the chamber into which the slateis discharged at intervals and trapped out of the separator through the medium ofv valves d 'fand e. The-power operated shaft f extends downwardly into the cone, axially thereof, and carries agitator arms g and h.

AIn the method of separation carried out in separators of this type, the cone is kept iilled with water and-finely comminuted insoluble material, such as sand, and the liquid mass is agi-- -tated by the agitating arms and also by the in.-

jection of water through suitably'placed lnozzles I, the agitation keeping the sand aoat and disliquid mass, composed of the water and sand, is greater than that of the coal and less than that of the slate,` so that the coal will oat in therupper part ofthe cone while the slate will sink to the bottom. The agitator arms .cause .a cir- 55 cular movement of the liquid. The coal prepared between them as the agitator rotates.-

tributed inthe liquid. l The specic gravity of the as to size but containing'impurities-which come with it from the mines, is delivered intthe liquid at one side of the cone through a suitable chute 2, and the coal, which oats near the surface, is

carried aroundto a Weir 3 at the opposite side of passing ,out with' the coal are drained off. The

slate sinks through the liquid to the outlet end o1' the cone and is trappedA out.4 The sand and liquid carried out with the coal and slate are pumped back into the cone through a pipe 5.

In commercial machines 'o f Athis type, the larger pieces of slate and most of the smaller pieces sink, but some of the smaller pieces o! slate pass out with the coal. The oating coal is submergedand the liquid is ldark and it is impossible to determine by sight whether any slate is mingled with the floating coal. I haveyfound, however, especially with the smaller sizes of coal,

that pieces of coal gathered in closely compactedl Vthe entrained pieces of slate to sink, I provide a series of vertically arranged barriers in the form of rods 6 which are extended down throughth'e zone in which the coal floats to a short distance above the uppermost agitator arms g, which arms, as' shown Yin thedrawing, may have an upwardly extending series of spaced pins l. Where lsuch pins are used, Iflnd it desirable to make them long enoughto rextend into the zone of the `float ing coal. The barrier rods 6 are secured to a plate 8 which is supported at the top of the cone on parallel beams 9 and I0 which extend diametrically across the top of thev cone at opposite sides of th'eshaftf- The plate Bextends diametrically across the cone on a line over the coal stream passing. from the inlet 2 to the weir 3. The barrier pins are. spaced apartthe proper distance to permit the pins- 1 on the agitator arms to pass Any clustersl of coal carried aroundby the liquid will be brokenup by contact with the barriers, and any slate carried by the clusters will be released and will drop downward in the liquid. It is found that the l' addition of the barriers described, by -causing the disintegration 'of \the floating clusters What I claimis:

1, A separator of the class described comprisi118' a conical receptacle, a uid mass therein comprising a liquid and ilnely comminuted material heavier than the liquid, agitating means comprising a rotatable shaft axially arranged in the cone and having an arm thereon provided with upwardly extending radially spaced rods ifornagitating and giving a circular motion t the liquid; an inlet for unprepared coal at one side of thecone 'and a weir for. the outlet of coal at the opposite side of the cone-,and a series of radially spaced baille rods supported above the liquid and extending into the liquid in the zo ne` traversed by, the floating coal, the baille rods and the rods on the agitator arm being so spaced that the latter will pass between the former as the arm rotates.

H 2. A separator of the class described comprising a conical receptacle, a fluid mass therein comprising a liquid and nely comminuted material heavier than the liquid', agitating means compris# ing a rotatable shaft axially arrangedin the cone- .and having an arm thereon provided with upwardly extending radially spaced rods for agitating and giving a circular motion to theliquid, said rods extending through the zone traversed by the oating coal, a'n inlet for unprepared coal at one side of the cone and a, weir for thev outlet of coal its lower end, a fluid mass in said receptacle oom'- prising a liquid and comminuted material heavier than the liquid. said receptacle being free from obstruction to the passage of slate or coal downward by gravity from the top of the liquid to said outlet5an inlet for unprepared coal at one side of the coneaud a weir for the outlet o! coal spaced periphervally from said inlet', agitating means fol" maintaimhgsaid nnely eommmuted mam-m1 1n suspension and causing the coal to iioat in the upper part ot the receptacle comprising a rotat v able shaft axially 'nged in the cone and having means thereon for` tating and'giving cir-` cularV motion to the liq d, and baille rods supported above the' liquid and extending into the liquid in the zone traversed by the iloating coal.

4. A separator oi the class described comprising a conical receptacle having an outlet for slate at its lower end, a liluid mass in said receptacle comprising a liquid and comminuted material heavier than the liquid, said receptacle being fi'ree Vfrom obstruction to the passage of slate or coal downward by gravityi'rom the top of the liquid to said loutlet, an inletv for unprepared'coal at'one side oi the cone and a weir for the outlet oi! coal spaced Dllpherally ltrom said inlet, agitating :means for maintaining said finely comminuted.

material in suspension and causing the coal to oat in the upper part oi" the-receptacle comprising a rotatable shaft axially arranged in the cone and having means thereon for agitatfng and giving circular motion to the liquid. and a 'series of radially spaced baule rods supported above the -liquid and extending into the liquid in traversed by the floating coal.

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